Jeffrey Dahmer Used His Own Halcion Prescription To Drug His Victims

Photo credit: Netflix
Photo credit: Netflix

Infamous serial killer Jeffrey Dahmer and his brutal crimes may have occurred more than two decades ago, but Netflix's newest limited series, Monster: The Jeffrey Dahmer Story, is bringing up the bodies again.

The series looks at how Jeffrey Dahmer lured young men back to his various homes and even a hotel room, before murdering and dismembering them. Jeffrey would often engage in sexual acts with his victims’ bodies before the dismemberment began, according to Biography.com, and he would keep souvenirs from his crimes—skulls, genitalia, and more—in his home.

In total, Jeffrey Dahmer killed 17 victims—usually young, gay men—between 1978 and 1991 by luring them to his home and then drugging them. The drugs he used, triazolam and temazepam, were an unusual but regular part of his killing routine. Here's what to know about how Jeffrey used insomnia medication to sedate and kill his victims.

What is triazolam a.k.a. Halcion?

Triazolam, also known as Halcion, is a sedative used to treat insomnia, according to the Mayo Clinic. It calms one’s brain and leaves a person feeling sleepy and pretty much incapacitated, while slowing down the nervous system, according to the website.

What is temazepam?

Temazepam is another medication for insomnia, according to the Mayo Clinic. Both of these medications are taken orally, though police found a hypodermic needle among Dahmer’s possessions when they raided his home, according to FBI documents.

How did Jeffrey Dahmer get these powerful drugs?

Dahmer was prescribed Halcion, a sedative that contains the drug triazolam, by a physician to help with his sleeping issues, according to a study by The New School Psychology Bulletin. At the time, Dahmer worked the the graveyard shift from 11 p.m. to 7 a.m. six days a week at the Milwaukee Ambrosia Chocolate Factory.

How did Jeffrey Dahmer drug his victims?

Dahmer would crush sedatives before bringing home a victim. Once he lured them inside, he then added the powder to the victim's drink, per The New School Psychology Bulletin. At his trial, one of his victims recalled Dahmer pouring powder into a mug and urging him to drink it.

Why did Jeffrey drug his victims?

Dr. Frederick Fosdal, who was hired by prosecutors to examine Jeffrey after his arrest, said the killer drugged his victims so that he could perform brain surgeries on them while they were unconscious, according to the Associated Press.

″He had hoped to control and keep them around longer by making them zombie-like,″ Fosdal told the Wisconsin State Journal, according to the AP.

What happened after he drugged them?

If you’ve heard Jeffrey Dahmer’s name before, you know there is no happy ending to this story. He drugged his victims and then killed them, often performing surgeries on their bodies and sexually assaulted them. He would then cut up the bodies or dissolve them in acid to get rid of them, according to the AP.

″They were not brutal, sadistic acts. He said he killed them in the most painless way he knew,″ Fosdal told the wire service. ″It all boils down to the question of control.″

Dahmer is also said to have eaten several body parts of his victims.

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